Aimed at high-end packaging manufacturers, I-Sub Digital director Andy Spreag said the system could produce colour-accurate mock-ups, one-offs or short runs in around five minutes, saving prototyping and decision-making time for brand owners. 

The system needs no foil presses or dies and can apply foil on areas as small as 0.3mm, said Spreag. 

Users can apply I-Sub Digital’s Digi-Foil range of foil products onto pages printed on the Mimaki UJF 3042 or 6042, using a heated applicator. The foil sheet is then removed leaving just the printed area covered with the foil product. 

Spreag said: “It doesn’t have to be just text, it can be images, outlines, anything. We’ve done a lot of sampling for some major toothpaste brands using their logos with holographic foils. Packaging, particularly cosmetics and luxury brands, needs to stand out more and more so brand owners are going further and further down this route. People like shiny things – we’re like magpies.” 

“For high-volume work you would still use traditional methods but Digifoil used in mock-ups and pre-production runs is the same in colour as production foil so you get an actual replica.” 

The foils can be printed and varnished over with users able to create different effects including metallic colours, holographic and foil embossing. 

“It’s the first digital system that we are aware of that allows you to put down a true metallic colour in this way,” Spreag said. 

"The Mimaki UJF is a small format UV printer with an A2 or A3 bed-size and 150mm head height, which allows us to apply foil to virtually any substrate,” he added.

The UJF 3042 and 6042 are available for £29,995 and £39,995 respectively, including the heated applicator and a starter pack of foil rolls in a range of colours.